I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a machine and system for assembling and balancing automotive tires.
II. Description of the Prior Art
In the manufacture and assembly of automotive wheels, a tire is typically mounted to a rim and then inflated in order to form the automotive wheel. Due to the manufacturing process for manufacturing tires, the tires almost always have some tire imbalance. This tire imbalance must be corrected before mounting the wheels on the automotive vehicle.
Traditionally, lead weights have been attached to the rim of the tire to offset any imbalance of the tire. However, the use of lead is undesirable due to the potential environmental hazards of lead.
For this reason, it has been proposed that lead weights used on tires be covered by a plastic or teflon material in order to seal the lead. Such a system, however, has not proven wholly effective in use since the plastic or teflon coating is easily damaged, either during assembly of the weight onto the tire rim or during use of the vehicle and thus also exposes the lead to the environment.